Lewis Hamilton downplays Mercedes W14’s Monaco upgrades, complains about the car being ‘very twitchy’

Though impressed with the Monaco GP upgrades, Lewis Hamilton remains skeptical about it being a game-changer.

Lewis Hamilton downplays Mercedes W14’s Monaco upgrades, complains about the car being ‘very twitchy’

 Many expected Mercedes to be competitive after bringing major chassis upgrades to the W14. Mercedes dropped their zero-pod design and opted for side-pods, like the rest of the grid. After starting in the 5th position, Lewis Hamilton finished 4th, and his teammate, George Russel, came home in 5th place at the 2023 Monaco Grand Prix.

Hamilton, however, claims that the Monaco Grand Prix was a “good improvement” for the team. “I’m really happy. We moved forwards and, coming into the weekend, I didn’t know where we would stand,” the Brit told Sky F1.

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The seven-time world champion also believes Barcelona would be the perfect testing ground for the W14. “I think next week we’ll get a much better feel for it at a place where we can really push through all the medium and high speed corners. But I think overall it’s been a positive this weekend for us,” he continued.

Although after Hamilton was asked about the car’s performance in the rain, the answers weren’t very ideal. “It was very, very twitchy and my tyres weren’t working, so it’s like I was on ice,” he stated. Although, the Mercedes driver was also thrilled to finish ahead of the Ferraris. “The team did a really solid job today with strategy. To leapfrog the Ferraris, I think, was awesome,” he continued.

Also read: Max Verstappen is willing to ditch Red Bull for Ferrari, says he always wants to be in the ‘fastest car’

The Mercedes W14 proving to be challenging in wet conditions

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The sudden downpour in Monaco after Lap 50 resulted in an array of pitstops and much confusion in the pit box. With the huge gap made by race leader Max Verstappen, the top order wouldn’t change much. However, the backmarker teams were looking to capitalize on this opportunity.

Although Lewis Hamilton claims that the team had a ‘good result’ this weekend, he admits that the car’s tire heating issues became severe due to rain. “From my side, I just couldn’t get temperature to my intermediate tyres, so I was tiptoeing. I think our crossover [pit call] was good, it’s just I lost ground to everybody when I had to stop, and it rained. So I just a bit of a disadvantage and just made it a little bit tricky. But no mistakes. Kept it on track,” said the 39-year-old.

Mercedes was going to bring their new side pod design to Imola. But extreme rain and flooding near the circuit resulted in the cancellation of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. The upcoming Spanish Grand Prix, however, would allow Mercedes to understand the true capabilities of the W14.

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